Ireland has had a very difficult history. The problems started in the 16th century when English rulers tried to conquer(征服) Ireland. For hundreds of years, the Irish people fought against the English. Finally, in 1921, the British government was forced to give independence to the south of Ireland. The result is that today there are two “Irelands”. Northern Ireland, in the north, is part of the united kingdom. The Republic of Ireland, in the south, is an independent country.
In the 1840s the main crop, potatoes, was affected by disease and about 750,000 people died of hunger. This, and a shortage (短缺) of work , forced many people to leave Ireland and live in the USA, the UK, Australia and Canada. As a result of these problems, the population fell from 8.2 million in 1841 to 6.6 million in 1851.
For many years, the majority of Irish people earned their living as farmers. Today, many people still work on the land but more and more people are moving to the cities to work in factories and offices. Life in the cities is very different from life in the countryside, where things move at a quieter and slower pace.
The Irish are famous for being warm-hearted and friendly. Oscar Wilde, a famous Irish writer, once said that the Irish were “the greatest talkers since the Greeks”. Since independence, Ireland has revived(复兴) its own culture of music, language, literature and singing. Different areas have different styles of old Irish song which are sung without instruments. Other kinds of Irish music use many different instruments such as the violin, whistles, etc.What does the author tell us in paragraph 1?
| A．How the Irish fought against the English. |
| B．How Ireland gained independence. |
| C．How English rulers tried to conquer Ireland. |
| D．How two “Irelands” came into being. |
We learn from the text that in Ireland .
| A．food shortages in the 1840s led to a decline in population |
| B．people are moving to the cities for lack of work in the countryside |
| C．it is harder to make a living as a farmer than as a factory worker |
| D．different kinds of old Irish songs are all sung with instruments |
The last paragraph is mainly about .
| A．the Irish character |
| B．Irish culture |
| C．Irish musical instruments |
| D．a famous Irish writer |
What can be the best title for the text?
| A．Life in Ireland |
| B．A Very Difficult History |
| C．Ireland, Past and Present |
| D．The Independence of Ireland |
Want to stay away from colds? Put on a happy face.
Compared to unhappy people, those who are cheerful and relaxed are less likely to suffer from colds, according to a new study. It's possible that being happy helps the body fight illnesses, say the researchers from New York University.
“It seems that positive(积极的) feelings may reduce (减少) the danger of illness,” said the study's chief researcher Sheldon Cohen.
In an earlier study, Cohen found that people who were cheerful and lively caught coughs and colds less often. People who showed feelings were also less likely to tell their doctors that they felt ill.
In this study, Cohen's interviewed 193 adults every day for two weeks. During the interviews, the people told researchers about the happy or sad feelings they had that day. After the two weeks, the people were given colds by doctors and had to stay alone in a room for six days.
The result showed that everyone in the study was equally(相等地) likely to get ill. But for people who said they felt happy during the research period, their illness was less serious and lasted for a shorter time.
Cohen believes that when people experience positive feelings, their body may produce a chemical that helps fight illness and disease. So if you are worried about your health, look on the bright side more often.Which of the following was NOT a part of the study?
| A．People talked about their feelings every day. |
| B．People were kept alone for six days. |
| C．People were given colds by doctors. |
| D．People were made to feel unhappy. |
What did the study find?
| A．People who felt happy never got ill. |
| B．People's feelings didn't influence their health. |
| C．People with good feelings became ill more easily. |
| D．People with positive feelings had less serious illnesses.. |
According to Cohen, which of the following may help fight illness?
| A．Eating. | B．Crying. | C．Laughing. | D．Sleeping. |
This passage is a/an_________.
| A．advertisement | B．newspaper report |
| C．story | D．scientist's diary |
What is the best title for this passage?
| A．Smiles can fight colds | B．Cause of colds found |
| C．The danger of colds | D．How people get sick |
One day a teacher was giving her young students a lesson on how the government works. She was trying to explain the principle(原理) of income tax（所得税）.“You see,” she began, speaking slowly and carefully, “Each person who works must pay part of his or her salary( 薪水) to the government. If you make a high salary, your taxes are high. If you don’t make much money, your taxes are low.”“Is that clear?” she asked. “Does everyone understand the meaning of income tax?”. All the students nodded.“Are there any questions? ”sheasked. All the students shook their heads.“Very good!”she said. “Now, I would like you to take a piece of paper and write a short composition on the subject of income tax.”
Little Joey was a slow learner. He had lots of problems with spelling and grammar, but this time he at least seemed to understand the task. He took his pen and after a few minutes, he handed the teacher the following composition: Once I had a dog. His name was Tax. I opened the door and in come Tax.One day the teacher was trying to explain_________.
| A．that everyone should pay income tax |
| B．how the government was formed |
| C．the basic principle of income tax |
| D．how much tax one should pay for his or her income |
After the teacher’s explanation,_________.
| A．each student seemed to understand the meaning of income tax |
| B．many of the students were still puzzled |
| C．all the students understood the meaning of income tax |
| D．all the students shook their heads |
The students were asked to ________.
| A．say something about income tax |
| B．answer some questions about income tax |
| C．write a composition on income tax |
| D．explain the principle of income tax |
Little Joey____________.
| A．was clear about the subject |
| B．understood what income tax meant |
| C．understood the teacher’s meaning |
| D．wrote a short composition about his dog |
From the passage we know_______.
| A．Joey’s composition was close to the topic |
| B．“income tax” and “in come Tax” sounds alike |
| C．little Joey was very clever |
| D．“income tax” share the same meaning with “in come Tax” |
Every year, a handful of new words enter the world’s collective vocabulary, but only one has the honor of being named Oxford Dictionaries’ Word of the Year. And this year’s top honor goes to “selfie”.
The frequency of the word selfie used in the English language has increased by 17,000 per cent since this time last year. This figure is calculated by Oxford Dictionaries using a research program which collects around 150 million English words currently in use from around the web every month. To qualify, a word need not have been invented within the past 12 months but it does need to stand out or become notable at that time.
Selfie is defined by Oxford Dictionaries as: “A photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smart phone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website.” Oxford Dictionaries said the earliest known usage is an Australian online forum post in 2002. A man posted a picture of injuries to his face when he tripped over some steps. He apologized for the fact that the picture was out of focus, saying that it was not because he was drunk but because it was a selfie.
Judy Pearsall, editorial director for Oxford Dictionaries, said: “Using the Oxford Dictionaries language research program, we can see a phenomenal upward trend in the use of selfie in 2013, and this helped to win its selection as Word of the Year.” She also added: “Social media sites helped to popularize the term, with selfie appearing on the photo-sharing website Flicker as early as 2004, but usage wasn’t widespread until around 2012, when selfie was being used commonly in mainstream media sources.”
Selfies have taken the world by storm. Everyone from the first family to ordinary people has taken the time to pose for a selfie. Celebrities like Miley Cyrus, Jennifer Lawrence, and Jennifer Aniston have all showed their new haircuts with selfies this year. Selfie was added to the Oxford Dictionaries online in August, but not yet in the Oxford English.What does this passage mainly talk about?
| A．The definition of the word “Selfie”. |
| B．The widespread usage of the word “Selfie” in 2012. |
| C．“Selfie” has been chosen as the Word of the Year of 2013. |
| D．“Selfie” began to be used in the Oxford English. |
What can we learn from the passage about the word Selfie?
| A．Social media sites helped to popularize the word Selfie. |
| B．The frequency of the word “selfie” has increased to 17,000 % since 2004. |
| C．Celebrities and the first family have all showed their new haircuts with selfies. |
| D．The earliest known usage of “selfie” was a man who was drunk. |
The word “selfie” was chosen the Word of the Year by _____________.
| A．A social media website. |
| B．The photo-sharing website Flicker. |
| C．A research program by Oxford Dictionaries. |
| D．People who take picture using a smart phone or webcam. |
In which column of a newspaper can we find this article?
| A．Arts | B．Entertainment |
| C．Science | D．Culture |
Just weeks after a special memorial voyage to mark the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, an Australian billionaire has announced plans to build an exact replica(复制品) of the Titanic, which is just as similar to the original one as possible. The Titanic replica will make its first voyage from Southampton, England to New York in 2016.
The Titanic is a famous ship that sank in 1912. The attractive story of the ocean liner(邮轮) has made millions of people interested in it around the world. It was believed to be an unsinkable ship but it hit an iceberg and sank on its first voyage. More than 1,500 people died in the sinking of the Titanic, which at the time was the world’s largest and most luxurious ocean liner.
When fully built, the Titanic II will be 270 meters (886 feet) long and capable of holding 1,680 passengers. Unlike the original Titanic which was powered by coal-fired boiler and steam engines, the Titanic II will have modern diesel(柴油机) and electric engines. Also unlike the first Titanic, the Titanic II will have more than enough lifeboats to accommodate everyone on board if something should go wrong.
When asked whether the new replica would sink, Mr. Palmer replied: “Of course it will sink if you put a hole in it. He also added “It will be designed as a modern ship with all the technology to ensure that doesn’t happen.”
When Mr. Palmer was asked if he expected hisTitanic to be successful, he simply said: “At my age, you don’t really worry so much about whether you’ll make money or lose money on something, but I believe that it is worth building it.”Why is the Titanic replica being built?
| A．To make a voyage from Southampton, England to New York. |
| B．To mark the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. |
| C．To realize Mr. Palmer’s dream of constructing a luxuriousocean liner. |
| D．Not clearly talked about in the passage. |
What’s mainly talked about in Paragraph 2?
| A．The travelling route of the Titanic. |
| B．A short introduction to the original Titanic. |
| C．The number of people on the Titanic when it sank. |
| D．People’s great interest in the attractive story of the ocean liner. |
What is the difference between the Titanic II and the original one?
| A．Titanic II will be powered by modern diesel and electric engines. |
| B．The appearance of Titanic II will be more luxurious. |
| C．The construction of Titanic II will be more complex. |
| D．The number of the lifeboats on Titanic II will be smaller. |
What is Mr. Palmer’s attitude towards his Titanic II replica?
| A．It will sink with a hole in it. |
| B．It will definitely be a great success. |
| C．It is worthwhile to build it. |
| D．It will make him lose money. |
Fatu Kekula is a hero. The 22-year-old Liberian nursing student, in her final year, managed to save the members of her immediate family from the Ebola virus, all without the help and convenience of a hospital.
Kekula reduced the rate to 25 percent. Four of her family members were infected with the virus. Her father, Moses, her mother, Victoria, her sister, Vivian and her 14-year-old cousin, Alfred Winnie. Sadly, Kekula’s cousin succumbed to the virus. It’s also impressive to note that while Kekula was treating her family members she managed to avoid Ebola entirely.
On July 27, Kekula’s father, Moses, went to a hospital in Kanata, after his blood pressure rose sharply. The only reason the hospital had a bed to offer him was because someone had just died. But the staff in the hospital didn’t realize the patient died from an Ebola infection. Shortly, after he was admitted to the hospital, Moses developed a fever, started vomiting and was suffering from diarrhea. Once nurses started dying of Ebola, the hospital shut down and Moses had to leave. Kekula drove 90 minutes to Monrovia, the capital of Liberia, to seek treatment. Three hospitals turned them away because there is no spare bed for patients at all.
Kekula made the drive back to Kanata to another hospital. They told Moses he had typhoid fever and did very little to treat him. So Kekula took him home. Once he was there, he infected three other family members. Her mother, sister and their cousin who was living with them.
Kekula only lost one patient, her cousin. Her method proved so effective that international aid workers, including UNICEF, began teaching it to others in West Africa who may not be able to get to hospitals for treatment.
Her father, mother and sister were already recovering when space became available at the JFK Medical Center on August 17. Alfred passed away at the hospital the next day. Kekula’s father, Moses said, “I’m very, very proud. She saved my life through the almighty God.”What is the best title for the passage?
| A．A courageous and selfless nurse. |
| B．Give her a medal: Woman saves family members from Ebola. |
| C．A family survived Ebola with the help of government. |
| D．The dreadful disease Ebola. |
What does the underlined word “succumbed to” in Paragraph 2 mean?
| A．was affected with | B．survived |
| C．died of | D．fight against |
Why Kekula took her father home?
| A．Because a patient died from an Ebola infection in the hospital in Kanata. |
| B．Because they were turned down by hospitals and little can be done to her father. |
| C．Because Moses were already recovering when he was admitted to the JFK Medical Center. |
| D．Because nurses started dying of Ebola and many hospitals were shut down. |
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